Hi,

We were supposed to stay with relatives in NJ and take the train in to NYC for the day next weekend. Due to a family emergency, the relatives can't have us stay. I am not very familiar with New York, and hesitate to drive into the city. We are driving from New Hampshire.

We want to spend Saturday morning in the city, visiting Ground Zero and Central Park, then see the matinee of Drowsy Chaperone (we have tickets), have dinner, and go back to the hotel. Any suggestions for a central hotel, or which subway lines would work? Would you recommend train or bus from Boston or Manchester, NH?

Alternatively...
Any advice for a place to stay just North of the city? Maybe a place with a regular shuttle in to Times Sqare area? Or on the train line? Which station would be my destination?

Any advice NYC experts can give would be very much appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Driving in the city is not that hard, partly b/c traffic doesn't move very fast, but a bus or train would also work. I think I'd opt for public transport if it doesn't break the bank so the driver won't be exhausted. I don't know about travel from Manchester but a train from Boston is easy. I think staying north of the city makes little sense for such a short trip and there are no places north of the ciy with a regular shuttles. You would be staying in a suburban area using weekend schedules of a commuter train. Have the experience of being in Manhattan.

If you want to drive and really don't want to take the car into Manhattan, you could stay across the river in New Jersey, either in Jersey City (there's a good Hyatt Regency) where there's a PATH train into Manhattan or the Sheraton on the Hudson in Weehawken, NJ. There's a ferry or a bus from Weehawken.

But for a day or a weekend, I'd stay in Manhattan. If you take a train from Boston, you go to Penn Station in NYC (the only Amtrak train stop). There are some discount codes on the amtrak.com website that should include a 50% off on a 2nd ticket or if you're more than 2, there are some family discounts.

There are some great specials on travelzoo.com right now for hotels in NYC. Have a look.
The 3

As always, Mclaurie is right on the money. Parking in NYC is a hassle and very expensive. With gas prices what they are, it might just be cost effective to take the train from Boston.

Don't stay outside of the city -- it isn't worth it. Summer hotel prices aren't usually exorbitant. Lots of recommendations on this site for inexpensive, centrally-located hotels in Manhattan. You'll waste lots of time and money trekking into the city each day.

Ground Zero and Central Park are nowhere near each other. I would suggest that you do one or the other after your matinee (which will probably end by 5 pm). You could get up, grab some coffee and bagels and enjoy them in the Sheep's Meadow (as many NYers do), take a leisurely stroll and watch all the NYers running and biking and rollerblading around the park. Walk around Times Square before your show.

After the show lets out, take the 2,3 subway (or the 1,9, which is the local) down to Fulton Street to see Ground Zero. You can also view St. Paul's Church, where Washington worshipped. It served as a comfort station during the cleanup after 9/11.

You'll be ready to have dinner around 7 or so.

Don't stay outside Manhattan if what you want to see is Manhattan.

Why not just take the train in from New Hampshire? Amtrak to Penn Station.

Check out NYC hotel deals on www.travelzoo.com A few of them are good for June weekends, and are pretty good deals.

If I only had one morning or half-day to spend in NYC, I'd spend it at Central Park instead of Ground Zero and maybe check out a museum as well. The Museum of Natural History, The Met, and MOMA are all easily accesible from the Park.

Not knowing how many you are in your party, but it will be cost-effective if there are a significant number.

Traffic can be bad in Manhattan, but normally only during rush hour and earlier on Fridays. However, if you have driven into other cities before, driving in Manhattan can sometimes be a lot easier, made easier by the almost sequential numerical street names and the easy grid-like structure of most of the city's street network.

The additional gas expenses and the hassles of lugging your bags from train stations to cabs to hotels and vice versa, to some extent may be costlier and more stressful than driving in and dealing with weekend rate for parking in the city (check with whatever hotel you may happen to book with or go to www.parkingnewyork.com).

First - NH to NYC for just one night seems like an awfully long trip. Or are you now planing to stay in the city for one day and then with the relatives?

As far as travel you don;t say how many we are. For a couple I would probably take the train - so you can start out super early and cath up on sleep on the way. For more people the train will start to get very epensive versus the car.

It makes no sense to stay outside the city given how very little time you have. And hotels in NYC don't have shuttles to/fro anywhere (except the ones that are right near the airports).
So look at the various web sites reco'd and then come back with specific queries on possible hotels based on your budget. And remember that there is 18% tax on top of the rates listed and parking is usually $30 per night and up.

Also - I agree to see something after the matinee - this is way too early to have dinner. I would do Central Park and museum (if possible) before the matinee (but what time will you get into the city?) and see Ground Zero after.

Otherwise you'll be having dinner at 5 in the afternoon - many places may not be open yet and are usually empty until 7 at least (exxept for the pre-theater crowd).

Thanks everyone.

My son and I were supposed to be with the relatives for 3-4 days; the day trip into NYC for the show was just one event.

We definitely will still go to Manhattan since we have the tickets already. From your suggestions, I guess we'll stay Fri and Sat nights. I need some time to compare air/bus/train costs, and find a decent hotel at a good price.

THanks for the leads.

Hi again!
If I use Priceline, which area is Times Square?
Midtown East, Midtown West, or Midtown South?
Other options include:
Upper East Side, West Side, Upper Midtown (Central Park and South), and Dowtown/SOHO/Fin
Thanks!

Times Square is in Midtown West. Very touristy and quite expensive for what you get. Other than that Midtown West is primarily business, Midtown East primarily business and shopping - with some residential far east.

Central Park South is more upscale business, shopping, residential. Upper east and west sides are primarily resiential, mostly mid to upscale with lots of modest and moderate dining as well as some upscale. Upper wet side has better transit options than east side.

Many major museums are in the 70/80/90s (east and west with Centra Park in between) - upper Fifth Avenue is Museumm Mile.

Downtown is a mix - Financial district all business and very quiet on weekends, but other areas are residential (of all types, shopping etc). Downtown is more trendy, uptown more traditional.

If you do Priceline be sure to do 4* - since some 3* are not very pleasant. (Priceline doesn;t judge/inspect the hotels - just works from info the hotels provide.)

Just a heads up that using Priceline in Manhattan, you're only guaranteed of getting a room for 2 with ONE bed. You can request 2 beds, but the hotel's not obligated to give you that if they don't have it available. If there are 3 of you, you're really playing roulette as to whether the room will fit you all.

Midtown west is closest to the theaters. The hotels that are most often "won" in midtown are the Hiltons, both the Hilton New York and the Times Square Hilton.

If you go to biddingfortravel.com and/or betterbidding.com, there's lots of info on how to bid, who's won what for what price and a list of the PL hotels by area.

Thank you all for the help, especially McLaurie, NYTraveler, and Lisette. I really appreciate your time. Sorry to report that our final resolution is one messed up get-away.

We are going to be visiting relatives the night we arrive after all, so I've used PL for Morristown. A family member will visit us one other night, so I've made a reservation "across the river," and will just spend one day in NYC. But it will still be nice to see some family.

I've checked old posts for theatre dining, but many seem fast and/or casual for pre-theatre dining. Any suggestions of what would be a bit nicer for post-matinee? We'll probably want to eat fairly early - around 6 or 6:30.

Thanks in advance for any additional info.

If you're asking for a nice restaurant in the theater district for an early dinner after a matinee, Le Madeleine is one popular choice but there are dozens of others depending on cuisine, price etc.
http://www.lemadeleine.com/

We often go to Remi for dinner either pre- or post-theatre. It is pricey, though.

http://newyork.citysearch.com/profile/7143769/

If you like steak, another good choice is Cite.